By Graham Falk

Copyright scotsman

Rangers ‘embarrassing’ defeat to Hearts at the weekend has to signal the end to Russell Martin’s turbulent 103-day spell in charge at Ibrox, according to one former Gers favourite. The head coach is still searching for his first win league win as Ibrox boss after two Lawrence Shankland goals sealed a comfortable 2-0 victory for the visitors at the weekend. Already nine points behind rivals Celtic at the top of the league, Rangers look out of the title race after just five matches. Currently sat 10th in the Scottish Premiership, just one point separates them from the relegation places. Booed off the field at the weekend, Martin has now overseen the club’s worst start to a season since 1978, and many fans are calling on the club’s hierarchy to sack the manager. And it’s a view that former Rangers goal scoring hero Kris Boyd shares, with the ex-Ibrox hero worried that his former club are facing oblivion if they continue to persist with Martin. The TV pundit, who scored 129-goals during his time with Rangers, believes the performances the team are producing underthe 39-year-old are getting worse by the game, and feels the limp display against Hearts is the final straw. “One team looked organised defensively and in-sync going forward, and that was Hearts,” he told Sky Sports. “It was terrible, right from the start. Rangers, at home, failed to lay a glove on Hearts. It was topped off with Hearts fans signing ‘you’re getting sacked in the morning’ and Rangers fans joined in with it. That’s how bad it was. “I don’t see any way back from this for Russell Martin. You can cut some new managers some slack if you can see slight improvement game to game, but it’s actually going the other way. It’s getting worse for Rangers. No wins in five, sitting 10th in the league, and it’s pretty embarrassing, to say the least. “When you listen to Rangers fans, they’re signing all afternoon, wanting the manager away. They’ve vented their frustration. A lot of them didn’t want Russell Martin in the first place. You’ve got to allow a new manager to come in and at least bed in his ideas, but if there’s no sign of improvement, it’s not going to happen. “Looking at it now, there’s only one thing going to happen. Once the fans turn, it is virtually impossible to get them back round. They’ve had enough, a lot of them left their seats early, and no wonder, if I was paying to watch that, I’d be away as well. Players have to shoulder some responsibility, but they looked devoid of ideas.” Sign up to The Scotsman’s daily football newsletter to get unrivalled Scottish football news and analysis – subscribe for free here.